West Side Spirit June 2, 2011

News: Mayor to Gut Early Childcare Budget June 2, 2011

Page 10 Since 1985

Opposition Grows to Charter School

P.6

A Greenhouse Grows in the West Side

Manhattan

Media

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Say Cheese: Photos from New Taste of UWS

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Profiles of 18 of the city’s best teachers See page 11 ALSO SPONSORED BY

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CRIME CHECK

Remembering The Fallen

Weekly, monthly and year-to-date crime stats from the 20th Precinct, on the West Side from 59th to 86th streets (Week to Date May 16 to May 22)

28 Day

2011

2010

% change

2011

2010

% change

Murder

0

0

***.*

0

0

*** *

Rape

0

0

***.*

1

1

0

Robbery

0

1

-100.0

4

8

-50.0

Felony Assault

1

1

0

4

4

0

Burglary

1

0

***.*

5

6

-16.7

Grand Larceny

8

7

14.3

51

46

10.9

Grand Larceny Auto

TOTAL

1

1

0

2

3

-33.3

11

10

10.00

67

68

-1.47

Year to Date 2010

% change

Murder

0

1

-100.0

Rape

6

4

50.0

Robbery

26

34

-23.5

Felony Assault

19

28

-32.1

Burglary

24

43

-44.2

227

259

-12.4

7

11

-36.4

309

380

-18.68

Grand Larceny Grand Larceny Auto

TOTAL

Source: Compstat

Mayor Bloomberg lays a wreath at the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument in observance of Memorial Day.

Spencer T Tucker

2011

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June 2, 2011

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NEWS YOU LIVE BY

express COLUMBUS

AVENUE

GARDENING—

Community

meeting Calendar Tuesday, June 7 • Community Board 7 Full Board Meeting, 6:30 p.m., Jewish Home Lifecare, 120 W. 106th St. This schedule is current as of Tuesday, May 31.

For more information, including full agendas, please contact the community boards directly.

Community Board 7 Parks & Environment Committee: 212-362-4008, cb7.org.

city’s policies and determined that while the Parks Department is responsible for planting and maintaining the trees, greenthumbed neighbors are welcome to plant and maintain small patches of appropriate foliage. The city has agreed that the flora will remain unharmed.

“In a dense, urban environment such as Manhattan, we need every square foot of green space that we can get,” said Sen. Duane in a statement.

Anyone interested in getting their hands dirty and greening Columbus Avenue should contact Community Board 7 for a list of acceptable plants and gardening methods: 212-362-4008, office@ cb7.org.

—Megan Finnegan SENIOR CENTER NEEDS LUNCH VISITORS—The JASA “Club 76” (Jewish

Association for Services for the Aged) serves hot Kosher lunches to about 50 seniors per day for a charge of $1.50 per meal. They need to boost their daily numbers to 75 seniors served per day in order to maintain this program. Currently the only senior center in the area to serve Kosher meals, JASA narrowly avoided the chopping block when state budget cuts threatened to close many of New York’s senior centers. Breakfast at the

club is 8 a.m. and lunch is 12 p.m. every weekday. 120 W. 76th St. Call 212-7120170 for information.

—MF MANCHESTER CENTENNIAL—Upper West

Side co-op building The Manchester, at 255 W. 108th St., turned 100 years old last week and celebrated with an Edwardian high tea, harkening back to the era when the building was built.

Assembly Member Daniel O’Donnell was in attendance to present an official proclamation honoring the anniversary.

The building, described in a 1910 New York Times article as containing “every modern improvement known to the builders of the highest class apartment houses,” currently has about 100 residents, and has seen several well-known names under its roof through the years, including author Flannery O’Connor and Governor Thomas E. Dewey. The original apartments had between six and eight rooms each, complete with faux fireplaces and servants’ quarters. Now, residents are compiling the history of the building and assembling a time capsule for the occupants to open at The Manchester’s hopeful bicentennial shindig, 100 years from now.

—MF

andrew schwartz

Thanks to the coordination of State Senator Tom Duane, Community Board 7 and the Parks and Transportation Departments, Upper West Side residents can now garden without fear in the tree pits bordering Columbus Avenue’s protected bike lanes. Last year, residents who made use of this new green space by creating mini-gardens were surprised to find their flowers uprooted by a landscape company, contracted by the city.

After hearing complaints about this practice, the groups met to clarify the

Singer Rachel Hundert, Composer Jay Alan Zimmerman, Meryl Zegarek in Edwardian dress and Opera Singer Irwin Reese celebrate the 100th birthday of the The Manchester.

STREET FAIR—The Broadway Mall Association and the West Side Federation of Neighborhood & Block Associations host the 34th Annual Plantation & Crafts Fair on Sunday, June 12, 12–5 p.m., between West 73rd and West 86th streets on Broadway. There will be 400 exhibitors, entertainment in three areas of the festival and 50 food stands featuring many different cuisines.

—Catharine Daddario

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news

With Construction Stopped, Charter Fight Continues

By Megan Finnegan Last week, while dozens of elected officials, parents and education experts rallied against the co-location of the Upper West Success Academy Charter School, the head of that same charter school network sat in the midst of kids’ artwork in a Harlem gallery, calmly explaining her hopes for the future students of the troubled charter.

“I get that charter schools are a new vehicle, but it’s just a way of delivering an education,” said Eva Moskowitz, CEO and founder of Success Charter Network and an outspoken education reform advocate.

Her latest proposed school is under siege from two lawsuits and a loud group of opponents who feel that the location of Upper West Success is problematic and unfair to the current high school students they say will be “squeezed out” of space.

Moskowitz insists that there is space for Success, and that more importantly, the school would provide a necessary alternative to some of the area’s public schools.

“You could live a half a block from a great school, but the line doesn’t include you, you could have to make some really difficult choices, between moving to Westchester or New Jersey or

Connecticut, or coming up with the money for private school. It’s not easy to pay 30, 40K per kid,” said Moskowitz.

Success Charter Network finally found a home for their newest school in February, when the Panel for Education Policy approved the co-location at the Brandeis High School Building.

Opposition came to a head a few weeks ago when a group of parents, supported by several elected officials and Public Advocate Bill De Blasio, sued the Department of Education to stop the establishment of Upper West Success. A judge has ordered that construction on the new school stop while the lawsuit is in play, and in the meantime, the United Federation of Teachers and the NACCP have filed an additional lawsuit, seeking to halt the co-location practice which it cites as “separate and unequal.”

Moskowitz characterizes the opposition to Upper West Success as a “vocal minority” of people in the community, but others question that portrayal.

Noah Gotbaum, president of the District 3 Community Education Council and a vocal opponent of the school, called the statement “just ridiculous,” and pointed out that Community Board 7 voted unanimously against the co-location,

and that every Upper West Side elected official has spoken against it.

According to Gotbaum, the argument against the charter school goes beyond the debate about the location and also relates to how the school is spending public funds to advertise itself.

“They’ve spent over a million dollars to manufacture that demand,” Gotbaum said about the school’s marketing. “Why is [Moskowitz] spending millions? If this school is so wanted and desired, why does she have to spend that kind of money?”

Moskowitz has said Gotbaum’s million-dollar estimate is grossly exaggerated, but she has not revealed the school’s marketing figure.

Gotbaum and others cite the lack of space at Brandeis as a main factor in their opposition, while Moskowitz asserts that there is plenty of room for Success to coexist with the five high schools.

“Even though there had been room originally for a certain number of kids, there isn’t any longer because the usage has had to change,” said Rachel DahillFuchel, academic dean of the Global Learning Collaborative school.

“I am not genetically opposed to charter schools, or even to sharing

space with an elementary school,” said Dahill-Fuchel, who said that the specific requirements of the charter school would necessarily take away space from the high schools. “There is no room, and we are already being pushed out of the space that the DOE assigned us.”

Upper West Success has accepted about 180 students for its inaugural kindergarten class, and if it can’t open in a few months, those students will most likely be placed at their regular zoned schools.

For Nina Rosen, the parent of a hopeful Upper West Success kindergartner who lives in the West 50s, that option won’t be good enough.

“We were originally zoned for P.S. 199,” said Rosen. “Then they changed the zoning, literally less than a month before applications were due, so we didn’t have time to move.” Her son was suddenly zoned to attend a failing school, and when a friend mentioned the new charter option, Rosen jumped at the chance for her son to attend.

“It got to the point that, this is the school that I want for my son,” Rosen said. “Now there’s all this litigation, all these political issues, and it’s just heartbreaking.”

A School Greenhouse Grows on UWS

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ration to start planting food and donating it Duet and Hamda Tahir, chatted with to the local shelter. Together with Science Bentz as they harvested their work, and Department Head Barry Gragg, Bentz then they trouped to the Church of St. formed the Greenhouse Club, which now Paul and St. Andrew to bring three boxhas about a dozen students who work on es of fresh greens to the Campaign for the vegetable garden after school.

Hunger Food Pantry.

To get started, they spent about $4,800 The kids added their contribution and on a greenhouse, which sits atop the Dwight School’s roof, and the rest of the money on supplies like irrigation system, containers, seedlings and soil.

“I’ve never had any experience gardening,” said Annalisa Van Wagner, a 10th grader in the club. “I’m always surprised it actually works.” The older kids repot seedlings and help with some of the tougher labor.

Last week, three 3rd graders climbed to the roof to pick Jennifer Betz used a $10,000 to build a greenhouse lettuce and spinach to fill card- on top of the Dwight School. The vegetables are given board boxes with produce. away to local food pantries.

“We grow plants, and we make soil,” said Ella Segal, one of the helped stack bags of dry beans and boxes club members, as she plucked leaves of cereal on the shelves of the marketfrom a giant tub. style pantry, where customers are allotElla and two of her classmates, Mary ted a certain number of points and can

June 2, 2011

andrew schwartz

By Megan Finnegan When Jennifer Betz won a grant for $10,000, she figured it would be best to place the decision-making power of how to spend it in the hands of elementary school students.

Betz, now a teacher at The Dwight School on the Upper West Side, was awarded a grant by Dickinson College, when she was on undergraduate six years ago, through their Teachers for Tomorrow program.

The stipulation was that she would only receive the funding after teaching for six years, and then she could use it any way she saw fit, as long as it benefited her school and community.

“I thought it would be more meaningful for the kids to figure out how to use it,” said Betz. She founded the Take Action Club and helped the students research problems facing New York City.

The kids felt that some of the most urgent issues facing the city were homelessness and sustainability.

“One student said, ‘Why don’t we plant apple trees in Central Park so people will have apples?’” Betz said. That was the inspi-

then select their own food items.

“It’s a very new partnership, but these are the kinds of things that turn into something big in the future,” said Hannah Lupien, the food policy strategist at the pantry who showed the students how to pitch in. She said that the pantry spends about $10,000 a week to buy food, which always includes fresh fruits and vegetables and milk.

The spinach might not go very far in the scheme of things, but Betz hopes to keep upping the students’ donations every season and is happy that they are learning skills as well as compassion.

“The hardest part is finding a way to grow most effectively,” Betz said. She is waiting to hear an estimate from a Dwight alumnus who works in rooftop landscaping. The best scenario, if they can get the funding, would be to transform the entire roof into a garden. For this year, they are hoping they’ll be able to harvest the spinach one more time before the growing season ends.

“The point is that these kids know there are hungry people in their neighborhood and they are able to help,” Lupien said.

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photo essay

Celebration of Best at ‘New Taste’ photos courtesy of new taste of the upper west side

Above: New Taste of the Upper West Side honored Dana Cowin, center, editor-in-chief of Food & Wine magazine.

Missy Robbins, executive chef at A Doce Restaurant, Jonathan Denno, executive chef at Lincoln, and Chef Jacques Torres joined her.

Above: Some savory treats that were available at the fourth annual New Taste of the UWS. Right: Some event-goers toast New Taste with a drink. There were free spirits and wine from local breweries and distillers on hand for the celebration of the best restaurants and spirit shops on the Upper West Side.

Right: A plethora of desserts were on hand for foodies to sample at the May 20–21 New Taste of the Upper West Side.

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June 2, 2011

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YO U Li V e B Y

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West Side Federation of Neighborhood & Block Associations Booth 73rd-74th Streets Please come meet us and give us your input about the neighborhood WestSideSpirit.com

June 2, 2011

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WEST SIDE SPIRIT

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news

Mayor to Gut Early Childcare Budget

By Allen Houston Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and other elected officials hosted a spirited town hall meeting May 25 at Goddard Riverside Community Center, 593 Columbus Ave., to protest proposed cuts to childcare and early education.

In his preliminary budget in February, Mayor Bloomberg proposed cutting 16,000 subsidized childcare slots from the Administration for Children’s Services, saying that it would save the city an esti-

mated $91 million out of its $65 billion budget. At the time, the cut meant that the number of ACS funded slots would be reduced from 106,000 to 90,000, according to the administration.

After protests and discussions with City Council, the Mayor announced that the 16,000 lost slots would be restored at a cost of $40 million to taxpayers, less than half of what it said it would save from cutting the seats. Elected officials questioned how the programs could

operate at the same levels if they were receiving only half the funds of what they received last year. Also, out of the $40 million, $15 million will be diverted to the Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) to create 10,500 Out-of-School Time (OST) spots for families who have been served by ACS. “In the old days the mayor could say with a wink and a nod, ‘Well, we’re restoring $40 million,’ and for a lot of people that was enough,” Stringer said. “What we’re

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seeing now is that people are looking at the early childcare cuts and saying, ‘Enough is enough, you aren’t going to do this.’”

Early childcare programs, such as the one at Goddard Riverside, supply early childhood education to children ages 2 to 4, whose parents are below the poverty line.

Students attend the classes all day long, all year, while the OST classes take place from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

“We have thousands and thousands of parents at the edge of whether they are going to make it in this city or not,” said Stringer. “All because of this budget dance that’s gotten out of control.”

The Borough President said he was troubled about how the city plans to keep up the quality of its care if they slash the budget. More than 14,000 childcare slots have already been lost in the childcare system over the last four years, according to the Borough President’s office.

Some wept as they talked about the hardship that they would endure if the program were taken away.

Nancy Martinez, tears in her eyes, said that she is afraid of losing her job and going on welfare because she can’t afford to put her two children into other, more expensive childcare programs.

“I can’t afford $40,000 for childcare,” she said. “With the atrocious New York City rents and $1,500 a month on childcare, I don’t know how I’m going to make it.”

“It’s overwhelming,” said another Goddard Riverside Community mother, who didn’t wish her name to be known.

“I just started working in September and if they take away this program it’s going to cut my legs out from under me. I can’t afford childcare.”

Council Member Gale Brewer said she couldn’t imagine a worse worst-case scenario than the city taking away childcare from low-income people.

“The least we can do as a society is provide childcare for people who are trying to pull themselves up by the bootstraps,” she said.

State Senator Bill Perkins closed the meeting by asking the people in attendance how many of them would be personally affected if the program were to be taken away. At least half of the hands in the packed room went up.

“I’ve seen this daycare problem time and time again, and it’s only because of your hard work and vigilance that we’ve been able to beat them back,” he said. “It requires all of us working together to stop them.”

The deadline for the Mayor to deliver his executive budget for the next year is June 30.

N ew s YO U Li V e B Y

2011

Manhattan

Media

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BLACKBOARD AWARDS FOR TEACHERS

Many Great Teachers, 18 Honorees

T

he Blackboard Awards, now in its 10th year, are Manhattan Media’s way of honoring the outstanding educational work that never seems to get the attention it deserves. Every spring we single out just a few of the city’s great teachers, and this year the Blackboards take on a heightened significance as thousands of our public school teachers face layoffs—including two of our 18 honorees. We certainly hope these cuts to all of our schools can be avoided.

This year we received an unprecedented number of nominations—over 1,000—from parents, students, teachers and principals in the city’s private, religious and public schools. Regrettably, we were not able to award every deserving teacher, but our editors and executives were heartened to read so many inspiring comments about the individual teachers. All of the nominees

have received a well-deserved honorable mention and we have posted their names at www.blackboardawards.com.

If there is a common theme for these 18 Blackboard recipients (and probably most outstanding teachers), it is that they are able to form connections with each of his or her students, no matter how large the classroom.

In the fall we will be paying tribute to the city’s great schools and principals, but this spring we celebrate our extraordinary teachers.

Josh Rogers —Blackboard Awards, Special Sections Editor

2011 Blackboard Award Winners GENERAL EXCELLENCE Rob Snyder Theresa Furman Rodrigo Alonzo Lindsay Korn Denise Martinez Linda Adler Rasheda Lyons

MATH

St. Luke’s School P.S. 87 The Speyer Legacy School Growing Up Green Charter School Blessed Sacrament School P.S. 40 P.S. 11/Purvis J. Behan Elementary School Corpus Christi School Staten Island Academy P.S. 166

Suzanne Mir Maryann Diglio Derek Bruun

Eliza Kuberska

Hunter College High School

MUSIC/ART

Stephen Cedermark Carroll School, P.S. 58 SPECIAL EDUCATION

Anne Looser

Herbert H. Lehman High School

ENGLISH/LANGUAGE ARTS

Meredith Hill

Columbia Secondary School for Math, Science and Engineering

HISTORY/SOCIAL STUDIES

Thandi Guimaraes

The Renaissance Charter School

FOREIGN LANGUAGES

SPECIALTY CATEGORIES

Rosa Torres

TECHNOLOGY/SCIENCE

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

Bill LaMonte

Millennium High School

John De Matteo

International School of Brooklyn P.S. 126/Manhattan Academy of Technology

5:30 p.m., Reception 6:15 p.m., Welcome Allen Houston, executive editor of Our Town & West Side Spirit newspapers 6:20 p.m., Awards Presentation Master of Ceremonies: Kate Snow, NBC News Correspondent

CONGRATULATIONS AND THANK YOU TO THE NOMINEES, WINNERS AND ALL NEW YORK CITY TEACHERS! 12

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June 2, 2011

N EW S YO U LIV E B Y

Mandarin Immersion

Our Day School offers a rigorous, dual-language curriculum in a full immersion environment.

PRESCHOOL. KINDERGARTEN. AFTER SCHOOL. SUMMER CAMP.

212-787-8088 175 Riverside Blvd at 68th Street www.bilingualbudsnyc.com Stay Connected with the West

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The St. Luke’s School Community congratulates treasured St. Luke’s School teacher

Rob Snyder

Follow us for breaking news, contests and everything West Side.

on his

2011 Blackboard Award For General Excellence

On Twitter: Twitter.com/WestSideSpirit

and thanks him for his 38 years of dedication and service to our community.

WestSideSpirit.com

Become a fan on Facebook: West Side Spirit June 2, 2011

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blackboard awards for teachers

Plays the Role of Great K Teacher to a T Who loves Mr. Derek more, students or parents? Too close to call

highly responsive to parent calls and emails.

Bruun, 34, grew up in Acton, Mass., and early on discovered a vocation for working with children.

“I was a peer mentor in junior high and high school and really enjoyed that,” he said.

He originally set out to be a pediatrician but along the way developed a passion for environmental science, his undergraduate major at University of Massachusetts Amherst. During college summers, he worked as a clinical staff coordinator at Y.O.U., Inc. (Youth Opportunities Upheld), a child health and welfare non-profit in Worcester, Mass.

“Watching the teachers there in action, seeing that moment when the light bulb goes on for these young kids who were in such a difficult state in their lives— that’s when the teaching bug bit me,” he recalled. Bruun moved to New York City in 2001 and went to work at P.S. 166 on the Upper West Side. After two years as an assistant, he enrolled at Hunter College and earned his masters degree in early childhood education, paving the

andrew schwartz

By David Gibbons experience his affection” and finally, “Mr. When your cute little kindergartener Derek is the teacher of every kindergarbounds out of bed every morning and can’t ten parent’s dreams.” wait to go to school, when you ask her School principal Debbie Hand sums how her day went and the most common things up succinctly: “He’s gifted.” answer you get is “excellent,” you can be One parent calls Bruun “magical,” and sure something is going very sure enough, his bag of right in the classroom. For tricks contains a few that Derek Bruun the parents of the 24 kids in should serve these children P.S. 166, the Richard Room 103 at P.S. 166 who a lifetime. Early in the day, Rogers School of Arts entrust the man universally to harness some of that and Technology known as “Mr. Derek” to famous 5-year-old’s kinetic 132 W. 89th St. orchestrate their children’s energy, Bruun has them first official year of school, stretch silently to music, this has been—overwhelmingly—the like a yoga class warming up. In his room, experience. he stresses above all “creating a caring Derek Bruun receives a cavalcade community with empathetic scenarios.” of ringing endorsements: “We are com“You have to be willing to be a character pletely in awe… I feel incredibly lucky,” for the kids sometimes,” he said. “You’ve “a real blessing,” “loving, warm and sup- got to know when it’s OK to be a little silly portive… like a Mary Poppins of teach- and also when it’s time to get more serious.” ers,” “truly special and a standout,” “nurOften going the proverbial extra mile, turing yet challenging,” “organized and he’s been known to scout out the routes disciplined… communicates values by for day trips in advance, right down to the example,” “has a great sense of humor… subway turnstiles, on his own time. He is clearly enjoys the students and lets them thoughtfully focused on each student and

Derek Bruun says, “You have to be willing to be a character for the kids sometimes.” way to becoming a full-fledged teacher.

Bruun leads a team of four other teachers and their assistants. The team encourages conceptual thinking and fosters independence.

“One of our main goals is that the kids become aware of the skills they have and don’t have to rely on teachers to apply them,” he said. “For example, we work with checklists from the beginning of the year and by the end they should be using those independently. We always acknowledge and celebrate when that happens.”

Lifetime Achievement Award for this Teacher Generations of Village students honor St. Luke’s Snyder before he retires

daniel s. burnstein

As one parent put it about Rob Snyder, “All I can say is there must be some kind of magic going on behind his classroom door.”

By Paulette Safdieh After 38 years of teaching math and social studies to the students of St. Luke’s School, Rob Snyder certainly raised expectations of teachers there. Snyder has seen students and their children walk through his 5th- and 6th-grade classrooms, making him an icon for the West Village community.

Snyder’s consistent use of innovative teaching methods and his ability to establish school traditions, like the 5thgrade musical and the student-made

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Egypt museum, earned him a Blackboard “The idea of teaching and service was Award. The parents, students and teach- always in me,” he said. ers at St. Luke’s agree there is no better After a short job in New Jersey, he moved time to honor Snyder, since he will be to St. Luke’s, where he’s been ever since. retiring at the end of the year.

“The St. Luke’s community is remark“People used to ask me how I manage able. It’s a small town in a big city,” he said. to keep fresh after so many years,” said Many former students feel lucky that Snyder, who was the first at the school to their own children ended up in Snyder’s use a Smart Board—an interactive white- classroom, too. Sarah Edwards was part board—in his classroom. “I of his 1974 class and her was always interested in daughter, Victoria Manning, Rob Snyder bringing new things to the had Snyder as a teacher St. Luke’s School school, and my love of drain 2009.

487 Hudson St. ma played into that.”

“He really is such an Ann Mellow, who amazing and inspirational served as head of school teacher,” said Edwards. for 12 years, considers Snyder, 66, a masMany of Snyder’s past and current stuter teacher in his ability to blend classi- dents got together at the school recently cism with creativity. to celebrate his career.

“Teaching will lose one of its finest “Whenever a student graduates, the stuteachers, but his impact will live on in dent’s name is called and the head of school each of the lives, minds and hearts that reads a tribute about his or her strengths he has shaped,” said Mellow, who left the and what we love about them, and they did school in 2007. that for me,” said Synder of the gathering.

The gift of reaching young minds His “favorite singer” Rosanne Cash, daughand spreading knowledge came natu- ter of the legendary Johnny Cash and rally to Snyder, whose father was also an mother of three St. Luke’s students, pereducator. formed a mini-concert for her biggest fan.

Although Snyder is retiring from his teacher role, he accepted a part-time position as director of alumni affairs.

“This is all a shame in a way,” Snyder said of the attention surrounding his retirement. “I’ll still be around.”

He does plan to take advantage of his newly open schedule by traveling with friends. “My retired friends like to travel and they’ve always had to go on my schedule, during summer break.

Now we’ll be going to New Zealand in February.”

Randi Cardia is one of many parents who feel fortunate to have had Snyder play a part in her children’s education.

Cardia’s two sons, who are now in high school, still recognize Snyder as their favorite teacher.

“All I can say is there must be some kind of magic going on behind his classroom door,” said Cardia, who describes Snyder as one of “the most dedicated, patient, compassionate, kind and wise teachers at St. Luke’s.”

Fellow parent Lisa Barry agrees. “He is perhaps the most important asset that St. Luke’s has had over its lifetime.”

N EW S YO U LIV E B Y

Summer Pre-College Program For Rising High School Seniors Pre-College Program: July 5-August 4

Exciting Course Options Available at the Lincoln Center Campus Applications due Friday, June 3. For more information, visit www.fordham.edu/summer or call (718) 817- 4665.

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blackboard awards for teachers

She Keeps Her Students Looking Up Furman’s pupils at still remember her bird lessons years later

incorporates lessons on social studies and science, as well as other subjects.

“We do poetry about birds,” she said.

During the unit, the class goes birdwatching and meets people whose jobs involve interacting with birds, she said.

The unit has inspired many of her students (she has about 26 in her class this year) to become avid birdwatchers.

“My son is still talking about Peregrine falcons—that was his bird that he studied,” said Danielle Gates, whose son was in Furman’s class two years ago.

“That particular unit really made my daughter interested in birds,” Hahn said.

“Now this kid is probably going to be into birds for her whole life.”

Furman said a parent once asked her, “What’s the deal about birds?” She admitted the unit could cover any topic and achieve the same educational objectives.

“It’s just that birds are very intriguing,” she said.

The overall goal is to encourage students to think and share information with one another and to ask questions, she said.

Occasionally, the children’s enthusiasm

andrew schwartz

By Ellen Keohane A Washington Heights resident, Parents of children in Theresa Furman, 56, didn’t always want to be a Furman’s second grade class at P.S. 87 teacher. She started out as a pre-med often think she provides their kids with major in college. However, a work-study extra attention—until they start talking program at a school made her re-think to the other moms and dads. her plans. After graduation, she attended “Every parent feels that their kid is Bank Street College of Education. super special to her,” said Linda Hahn, “I’d been in high school near the end whose daughter was in of the ’60s and I had that Furman’s class two years kind of political/social Theresa Furman ago. “She takes real time to vision that I would work P.S. 87 get to know each kid.” with kids who were in the 160 W. 78th St. It’s no wonder that inner city,” Furman said. a number of P.S. 87 parFurman taught in East ents initiated a campaign to Harlem for 17 years before nominate Furman in the general excel- coming to P.S. 87 on the Upper West Side lence category for this year’s Blackboard about 10 years ago.

Awards. The campaign’s success appears “I had a son and he was entering kinto have surprised no one—except dergarten on the West Side and I wanted Furman herself. to be closer to him,” she explained. “P.S. “It’s very well deserved. She teaches 87 has really great kids, great teachers, kids how to be curious about the world great families. It’s a nice place to be.” around them,” Monica Berry, principal of The school also provides her freeP.S. 87, said about the award. “Just walk- dom—within the parameters of course ing into her classroom, it’s impossible not requirements—to develop her own curricto feel the warmth and excitement she ulum. Every fall, Furman engages her stugenerates.” dents in a long-term study of birds, which

Theresa Furman. extends beyond school. “Sometimes they even get their parents involved and go birdwatching on the weekends,” she said.

Birds also tend to appeal to the wide range of interests found within a 2ndgrade classroom. “Some children think the birds are cute and some children think the raptors are cool,” she explained.

Furman said that getting to know her students’ interests and preferences is the best part of her job.

“They’re endlessly interesting and charming and thought-provoking,” she said of her students. “Each child is unique, and so a really fun part of teaching for me is getting to know them as individuals.”

Speyer Educator Finds the Medium Means More than the Message Alonzo uses film, music and different media to teach coursework

andrew schwartz

Rodrigo Alonzo.

By Max Sarinsky A blond 1st-grade boy sporting a fake moustache stands inside a classroom that has been temporarily transformed into the Wild West. He is visually distraught as a voice from behind the camera—the voice of his teacher, Rodrigo Alonzo— asks what has just happened to the once quiet frontier.

“They dug up all the land to find gold,” he says with a traditional cowboy accent.

“What happened to you?”

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“I lost most of my land.” full class of parents and the response was The interviewer presses on: “Are you so positive, Alonzo said, that he decided interested in gold?” to write a musical with the class revolv“No,” the student retorts. ing on another topic of study: the early “What are you interested in?”

20th-century immigration wave. The class “Cows!” recently wrote three original “Cows, why?” songs together and will perRodrigo Alonzo The student thinks form the play next month as The Speyer Legacy School its year-end project. for a moment before 15 W. 86th St. responding: “Because Alonzo’s decision to bring I’m a cowboy.” songwriting into class repreThe scene is just one of many in a sents another step in his embrace of dif30-minute film that Alonzo made with ferent teaching media. A longtime guitar his class at Speyer Legacy School on the player, Alonzo said that he was reluctant Upper West Side as part of a unit on the to incorporate song into the curriculum.

California Gold Rush. But it demonstrates “I take songwriting very seriously,” he an important lesson that Alonzo, 40, has said. “I didn’t want to dominate.” embraced through 18 years of teaching: Alonzo taught kindergarten last year, that the medium is often more important and now has most of the same students in than the message. his 1st-grade class. Several of the parents “It’s as much about how the kids are said that Alonzo had a special ability to learning as what they’re learning,” he tailor instruction to the unique ways that said. each student learns.

Alonzo contrasted this with his philosJennifer Elk, whose daughter Celia is ophy when he first began teaching at St. in Alonzo’s class for the second straight Ann’s, when he “thought that just present- year, credited Alonzo’s use of visual ing this stuff was in and of itself enough.” teaching methods with her daughter’s The film premiered in the winter to a progress in math, a subject in which she

has traditionally struggled.

“He really has a great understanding of what makes each child motivated,” Elk said. Malena Belafonte, a founding board member of Speyer Legacy School whose daughter Sarasina is also in Alonzo’s class, offered similar praise.

“He really was able to make the kids who they are and still learn,” she said.

Belafonte described her daughter as an idealist, which she said has fostered sensitivity to other childrens’ feelings that has previously interfered with her own learning.

“He completely gets her sensitivity,” Belafonte said. “She’s become this full person who can handle everything but still believes in her vision of how the world should be… She wants to go to school on the weekends.”

Recent lessons include a lyrics-writing session for the class musical and a synonym matching game including several words that most students didn’t recognize.

“There has to be a little element of challenge,” Alonzo said. “You set up the structure and they take it to places you didn’t think it could go.”

N EW S YO U LIV E B Y

blackboard awards for teachers

Bringing the World Together in the Classroom Charter teacher focuses on building community with students from many countries

accompanying him on a school outing.

She said Korn sent her a picture of her son smiling and having fun.

“Parents want to be able to help, but a lot of them don’t know how or what to do,” said Korn. In keeping with school policy, she sends a weekly newsletter to parents detailing what the students will be working on the following week.

“If [parents] are constantly aware about what is happening in the classroom then they can help their children at home,” she explained.

This week, Korn’s 28 students will be working on final drafts of their non-fiction books.

They’ve also created real-estate brochures exploring the benefits of living in a rural, suburban or urban community.

Korn’s students learned about New York City’s history by putting on a school play; the kids created their own costumes and props. And they are grasping the concept of fractions by cutting up pieces of clay.

“I’m a very hands-on teacher. I think learning should be very messy,” said Korn.

Luckily for her, Growing Up Green is a fairly new school that encourages creativity and social interactions, she said.

andrew schwartz

By Rosaleen Ortiz others trace their lives in the city back Growing up in suburban New Jersey, five generations.

Lindsay Korn fell in love with books in Ms. Korn hopes the lessons learned from Crowley’s 1st-grade classroom. By the time such a diverse community are not lost in she was in 2nd grade, her mind was made the kids. up: She would be a teacher. Years later, “The most important part of my classwhile a student at Northeastern University room is the community that we build,” she in Boston, she discovered urban teaching said. “It’s really amazing to see how much and set her eyes on the Big Apple. they actually care for each other even Korn, 27, has been teaching in New though they come from vastly different York City schools for the last four years, backgrounds.” most recently 2nd grade at Long Island Growing Up Green’s principal Matthew City’s eco-themed Growing Up Green Greenberg said Korn has built “terrific Charter School. relationships with the chilKorn says she can’t dren and the families in her Lindsay Korn imagine doing anything class.” else.

Parent Ellen Greenberg Growing Up Green “What I love about (no relation to the princiCharter School teaching is the interaction pal) said Korn is respon39-37 28th St., Queens with all different types of sive to parents, answering people,” she said. “I have texts at 10 p.m. learned so much from our kids.”

“I’m an obsessive sort of a neurotic Teaching in one of the most diverse mother and I worry about stuff,” said counties in the country means that Korn Greenberg, whose 7-year-old son Jason is has learned to say hello in languages she’d in Korn’s 2nd-grade classroom. “Teachers never heard before, and has sampled are overwhelmed every day at the classa lot of unfamiliar food. She’s learned room, but she takes the time to make sure about families of young immigrants who the parents know what’s going on.” made their way to Queens from countries Greenberg remembers a day when in South America and North Africa, while Jason was upset because she wasn’t

Lindsay Korn.

Korn and two colleagues designed the 2nd-grade curriculum from scratch last summer. Prior to that, the school only had kindergarten and 1st-grade programs.

Korn moved up a grade to 2nd this year, together with her class.

Second grade has become her favorite grade to teach because, she said, kids can grasp more difficult concepts, yet they are still wide-eyed and eager to learn.

She said she hopes that when her students move on from her classroom that they’ve mastered kindness and learned to always “look at the world through other people’s eyes, not just their own.”

Parents Feel Blessed She’s Teaching Their Children Once she noticed a hand callous and helped change one girl’s education

Denise Martinez.

By Juan DeJesus Taking the time to talk to a parent can make a huge difference. For 4th-grade teacher Denise Martinez, she makes that difference every day.

Martinez, 33, has lived and breathed teaching for as long as she can remember—especially since her mother is a teacher at another Catholic school.

“I grew up around teachers and I grew up in that environment where theO u r To w n NY. c o m

ory and techniques were discussed,” said ter took classes with Martinez.

Martinez.

Pineda describes Martinez as caring Even the journey she took to become a and very understanding, as well as deterteacher at the Blessed Sacrament School mined to give students as much help as in the Bronx was meant to be. Martinez’s needed. former grammar school teacher is the She first met Martinez during her principal at the school. So when the sug- daughter’s Individualized Education gestion came to give the school a call to Program, a mandated plan of action for inquire for a position—it children who require was only natural. a little extra help with Denise Martinez The eight-year veteran schoolwork or therapy.

Blessed Sacrament School teacher has been there “It was her keen 1160 Beach Ave., Bronx ever since. This year, senses and observation Martinez is seeing her skills that I first noticed first set of students graduate. in Ms. Martinez,” said Pineda.

“I remember when they were babies.

Martinez advised the parent and guidNow they are young men and women ed her through the process. The teacher going to high school,” said Martinez. even helped Pineda avoid exhausting her But for parents at Blessed Sacrament medical insurance. it is her approach to students that sets But it was when Martinez noticed a her apart. callous on her daughter’s hand that she “Her sensitive approach to children really made a difference. with special needs and the reassurance Martinez saw the child’s need for occuthat she embeds in the students is amaz- pational therapy. After the evaluation, it ing,” said Elizabeth Pineda, whose daugh- was revealed that Pineda’s daughter has

low-tone muscles in her hand, which tire easily. The teacher made every effort to sit next to Pineda’s daughter and take notes for her when the girl’s hand tired.

Martinez arrives at the school early, making herself available to students for any extra help they may need. She is also known for her ability to speak to the parents in a caring and compassionate way about issues concerning their children.

She fosters an environment of learning through cooperation and participation in all aspects of her students’ lives.

Parents notice this caring nature, especially Pineda, whose only regret is that her son is transferring so he will not get to learn from the woman who empowered her daughter and let her succeed at life.

“I never thought that I made that much of a difference. I know that I made a difference in their daily lives. But it’s a great feeling to know that when a child leaves a class they still have me in their hearts,” said Martinez.

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30 Individual Connections

Third-grade teacher at P.S. 40 finds time for each student in large class couraged by school and you have to find a way to reach them. You learn about their interests and their strengths and you use this to make a connection with them. You find out that a student who struggles in school loves SpongeBob and you use that to help them.”

The parents who nominated Adler for the Blackboard Award said she indeed has the ability to connect to each student, which is sometimes rare in the tumultuousness that comes from teaching children of such a young age, but even rarer when those children are part of a class that is made up of 30 students.

Parents say Adler challenges and encourages students, giving them the confidence to excel in areas where they once had trouble. Their parents are startled that their children actually look forward to going to school.

“You can walk into Linda’s room anytime and students are always engaged and loving learning,” said Susan Felder, principal of P.S. 40.

But for the school’s principal, it’s something more.

“Third graders are at the age when

daniel s. burnstein

By Annie Lubin children about plants and gardening.

At 8:20 am, Linda Adler walks into her Upon graduation, she worked at the 3rd-grade classroom in P.S. 40 and begins Conservatory at the New York Botanical her favorite part of the day.

Gardens. She enjoyed the work but grew With her soothing voice, enthusiastic bored. demeanor and engaging persona, it seems “It was mostly just me and the plants,” like everything about Adler, 32, screams she said. Adler took a research position teacher of the year. For Adler, teaching at Cornell University studying soil nemwas not her first career choice, but after atodes (worms), but once again grew more than six years, she bored from the limited now says with resounding human interaction the job Linda Adler confidence that teaching entailed.

P.S. 40 is the only career she ever She realized that what 319 E. 19th St. wants. she loved most about “The best part of the working at the Botanical job, for me, is seeing that “aha moment.” Gardens was her time spent engaging The light bulb clicks, and they make a con- with children. nection or figure something new out…

So Adler enrolled at Bank Street for The first time I saw that aha moment I her masters in education. said, ‘Oh wow, this is for me,’” said Adler, “I feel like you need to understand my who, with 30 students, proudly added, “I background to understand my teaching see that at least 30 times a day.” style,” said Adler.

Adler’s long path towards teachAnd for Adler, that teaching style is a ing began at the Bronx High School of mix of passion, curiosity, engagement and Science, where she became interested in genuine interest in the subject matter. horticulture, and later studied plant sci“A good teacher is someone who finds ences at Cornell University. New York a way to connect to every student in the Botanical Gardens, where she taught class,” Adler said. “Some kids are dis-

Linda Adler. they are passionate about learning. Linda is passionate about teaching,” said Felder.

“From the beginning she had the intuition and initiative that all good teachers must have.”

Although parents and administrators across the board would love for it to be possible, the traits that make a great teacher cannot be broken down to an exact science. But when a parent can say of a teacher, “If [my son] could have a teacher like Linda Adler (or better yet, Linda Adler herself!) every year throughout his education, I could want for nothing more,” then you know you’ve got the right equation.

Robots, Math & Recycling

Helping teachers teach math and making sure the school recycles

daniel s. burnstein

Rasheda Lyons.

By Rochana Rapkins This year, students from P.S. 11 in Clinton Hill took first place honors in Brooklyn’s first Lego League robotics competition. The girls and boys on the team partnered with volunteers from the Polytechnic Institute of New York University, and built and programmed robots to push a pacemaker toward a heart constructed out of Lego blocks.

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At the program’s helm is coach after teaching 4th and 5th grades for nine Rasheda Lyons, 34. She has been at the years. She helps other teachers with lesschool—which was once plagued by son planning, and gives workshops on low attendance and standardized test math instruction. scores—for 13 years.

“Oftentimes, teachers are math pho“I feel that I’m exposing them to engi- bic, and I figured I would be able to help neering and the sciences so they might them present the instruction to students later remember this experience and con- in a way that is fun and exciting and innosider careers that they vative—and in line with may not have thought what research is showRasheda Lyons of,” said Lyons. ing,” she said.

P.S. 11, Purvis J. Behan “Not only is she an She can also be found Elementary School exceptional teacher, coaching struggling stu419 Waverly Ave., Brooklyn dents in math during the she is also an inspirational and motivational extended day, keeping icon in the school,” wrote a colleague the peace in the cafeteria during lunch who nominated her for a Blackboard and leading a recycling initiative. She Award. He credits her with spear- got teachers, custodians and students heading a recycling campaign, creat- on board, and established student “recying monthly math challenges posted cling patrols.” When the patrols find throughout the school and leading the recycling bins that are uncontaminated robotics team to victory. by waste, they can earn a pizza or ice Lyons’ primary job, however, is to cream party. teach others how to teach. She took on Lyons also coordinates the school’s the role of data specialist and math coach annual oratory contest. Fourth- and

5th-grade students memorize famous speeches by the likes of John F. Kennedy, Sojourner Truth and Oprah Winfrey, and recite them at an assembly. In the process they learn enunciation skills, discipline and self-confidence, Lyons said.

“Those are the qualities they need if they are going to be teachers and doctors and lawyers,” she said. “They have to be able to convey ideas in a way that commands the audience.”

Outside of school, Lyons enjoys biking, reading and going on long walks.

And in four weeks she is getting married.

She plans to spend the month of July on her honeymoon. Asked about her future plans, she appears torn. She sees herself as an agent of change in the classroom, and is thinking about a career in school administration. Yet she still feels the lure of working with students in the classroom.

“I also miss my students in the classroom,” she said. “I miss the family you create in a classroom full of your babies.”

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blackboard awards for teachers

Immigration Lessons on an Island: Staten Tourists from around the world were impressed with her class project

By Juan DeJesus at learning and differentiated instruction Third-grade teacher Maryann Diglio systematically has grown tremendously,” prides herself on giving each child indi- said Patricia Lynch, director of studies at vidual attention so her students can expe- Staten Island Academy, a private school. rience the greatest amount of success After coming to Staten Island and maximize their learning.

Academy, Diglio quickly adopted a The 52-year-old Staten Island resident workshop model. The teacher emphacame to teaching at a later point in her sizes hands-on learning from her pupils. life. Diglio earned a bachelors degree in A quick lesson starts the class, followed accounting from St. Francis College in by students breaking into groups or off 1981. But after 10 years of crunching num- on their own. bers at Ernst & Whinney, The teacher lets the which later became Ernst students develop ideas Maryann Diglio & Young, she knew she that are later presented Staten Island Academy wanted to do more with to the entire class. If she 715 Todt Hill Rd., her life. sees that students are Staten Island “I always wanted to having a hard time, Diglio be a teacher. I was never will prepare a mini-lesson comfortable in that field. I felt that I never to help focus their understanding. gave back. When my children got older, I “All the children and parents feel that took the chance to go back to school and Ms. Diglio honors their experiences and do what I love,” said Diglio. their voices, no matter how soft the voicDiglio earned a masters degree in 2004 es or how diverse the experiences,” said from the College of Staten Island, allow- Lynch. ing her to enter the world she knew she Diglio even describes her teaching as a was destined to be a part of. learning experience.

“Ms. Diglio always had a curiosity about “I’m a learner myself,” she said. “I love teaching and learning. Her ability to look learning. I’m very curious and the stu-

dents feed off my passion.”

Diglio’s lessons are plucked directly from newspapers, magazines and literature, but she excels at using the pupils’ natural curiosity to expand on their learning experience.

“Maryann developed an immigration study three years ago that has grown yearly in depth, integration and complexity. Her students had the honor of having their picture books hanging on display at Ellis Island,” said Lynch.

The picture books were made after the students conducted interviews with immigrants who are school parents. The project was a huge success, even surprising the teacher.

“The ranger called me up and said it was so magnificent. It was the most looked-at display. People all over the world were looking at the books. At one point the rangers were afraid of the books breaking,” said Diglio.

But the point the teacher got from that experience was very simple.

“We all touch someone. These people from other countries were being touched by something these children worked on.

Maryann Diglio started off in accounting before following her passion for teaching.

That is a great lesson,” said Diglio.

Even with the success of her students, Diglio continues to read studies and other materials to better prepare herself to meet the needs of her students.

“Maryann understands that teaching is a never-ending challenge with new research constantly arriving. Maryann retains her curiosity as her fund of knowledge expands, which is why she is a truly lifelong learner,” said Lynch.

“Every child is worth it,” said Diglio.

“It’s worth all the attention and the care you put in. It is really all about the kids.”

Teaching Spanish to Preschoolers

Some students start without knowing any words while others are fluent

daniel s. burnstein

Rosa Torres tries to make learning a second language as easy as possible.

By Annie Lubin Rosa Torres took a leap of faith in 2005 when she accepted a job as a Spanish immersion teacher at the newly opened International School of Brooklyn. Torres had no veteran teachers from whom to learn how to best teach the students in her early childhood classes. There were no proven methods or surefire tactics for teaching in such a progressive environment. But Torres took the freedom and flexibility that the O u r To w n NY. c o m

school provided and ran with it. encounters with a foreign language can That leap of faith turned out to be the sometimes be a scary and isolating expebest move for Torres, who is now able to rience. Although young children are pursue her chosen career with the added best equipped to pick up a second lanbonus of giving her young students an guage, the experience of walking into appreciation for her own Spanish culture. a classroom where the only language “I love teaching in general,” said spoken is an unfamiliar one can be very Torres. “And here I’m able to transmit intimidating. that love for learning and for being bilinTorres believes that the key to teaching gual and for expressing a language without the rewards in exploring overwhelming the Rosa Torres other peoples’ cultures.” International School of Brooklyn children is to go about Torres, 27, grew up in the process in a play477 Court St., Brooklyn the Dominican Republic ful way. “We really and moved to the United have to make it very States about 10 years ago. Her background fun for them,” she said. gives her the ability to know what the stu“The program is very focused on the dents are going through in trying to learn a whole idea of exploration and inquirynew language, and the experience to know based teaching,” said Torres. She has how to best help. “For me, coming here found that the best results come when and not knowing English was a very hard the children can explore the language and transition,” said Torres. “I keep that in con- materials in a hands-on way. Torres focussideration every time I teach. I always try es on projects, songs, books and art that to make the experience of learning a sec- “transmit the love for Spanish culture.” ond language as smooth as possible.”

Because of the nature of the immerFor children of such a young age, sion program, Torres has the added task

of having to get through to a group of students with a wide range of comfort ability with the language. Some come in to school on the first day not even knowing how to say hello in Spanish, while others come from Spanish-speaking homes or from prior exposure to the language.

“The students in her classes have grown academically, social-emotionally and linguistically under her great care and guidance,” said the school’s director, Rebecca Skinner. “Her own curiosity for learning is contagious.”

As one parent described, these are 3- and 4-year-olds who come into school knowing only a few Spanish words picked up from Nickelodeon shows, and who leave school at the end of the year speaking complete sentences.

But for Torres, it is a career that is more rewarding than she ever thought possible.

“I have the freedom of being who I am and designing my material and curriculum,” said Torres. “We teach what the kids are interested in learning… This is the kind of job everyone wishes they had.”

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Singing His Praises

His students go from pre-K to 2, but they perform opera as well as pop school in Spanish Harlem. He worked there a year before transferring to P.S. 58.

“This is not a music program in your typical New York City school,” said Cedermark. “And it’s great for me because I wanted to work in a public school where the arts were appreciated.”

The way Cedermark talks about his kids, it sounds like they are teenagers, not 6- to 9-year-olds. He speaks of their harmony and ability to grasp the lyrics of songs. And, because the school has a dual-language program, in this case French (which is also Cedermark’s second language), he is able to teach his students songs in both tongues.

“There are kids that are Frenchspeaking and don’t know English at all,” he said, referring to the French, Haitian, Swiss and African immigrants. “It’s nice to help make their transition easier and empower them through song.”

The students even did “The Anvil Chorus” from the Italian opera Il Trovatore, when Cedermark brought in people from the Metropolitan Opera.

daniel s. burnstein

By Linnea Covington formed all sorts of songs, from Madonna’s Not every kid can say they live in an “Holiday,” to Michael Jackson’s “Man in the episode of Glee, but the ones in Stephen Mirror,” to Jay-Z’s “Empire State of Mind” Cedermark’s class at P.S. 58 have an and yes, Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing,” a elementary version of it, and no one is Glee classic—though to be fair, Cedermark complaining. said he hasn’t seen the show.

“Through everything he does it’s obviThe feeling of gratitude is mutual and ous how much Mr. C truly enjoys sharing for Cedermark, the opportunity to work his passion for music with our kids,” said at the Carroll School has been a dream.

Vivian Manning-Schaffel, whose 7-year- He lived in the tri-state area the first 13 old son Dylan is in one of Cedermark’s years of his life before moving to North classes.

Carolina with his family. As soon as he Parent Brogan Ganley mirrored the sen- was ready to go to college, Cedermark, timent and said, “Blossom, 29, knew he had to get my daughter, had such a to New York City and Stephen Cedermark back hard time getting out the pursue the performing Carroll School, P.S. 58 door for school, but with arts, which he did at New 330 Smith St., Brooklyn York University. He still chorus in the morning she is at the door telling me to hadn’t found his teaching hurry up. We absolutely love him.” path, but when he took a job as a tutor Since Cedermark started at P.S. 58 in in the America Reads Program, he fell Carroll Gardens two years ago, he has in love with being in the classroom and taught music to pre-kindergarten through spending time with kids. So, instead of 2nd graders, directed the 2nd- and 3rd- following a career in lights, he attended grade choir, and organized the music for Teachers College at Columbia University 5th-grade graduation. His kids have per- and shortly after got his first job at a

Stephen Cedermark.

He also had Judy Kuhn, who sang in Disney’s 1995 animated film Pocahontas, come in and talk to the kids.

After all, he said, “I feel like my parents’ confidence and support in my ability and artistry was important.” And he hopes to help give his students the same encouragement.

Cedermark is in line to be laid off at the end of the year, a prospect he called “nerve racking. I am hoping the mayor does what’s in the best interest of the children… The budget could be refined in many ways that could save teachers.”

From ‘Runt’ to Fitness Pied Piper De Matteo has added sports teams by the dozens to MAT

andrew schwartz

John De Matteo’s policy is to never cut a student from a team.

By Max Sarinsky John De Matteo didn’t move far when he quit his job on Wall Street eight years ago to become athletic director at P.S. 126 in Chinatown. But the two jobs could have been a world apart.

“I knew I wanted to be in a school that didn’t really have anything,” De Matteo said about his decision. The school had almost no competitive sports program at the time, but De Matteo set his sights high.

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“I said I wanted to build a sports pro- sports, like volleyball with beach balls. gram like they have in the suburbs,” he said.

“Old-school phys ed is over,” he said.

So he did, and then some.

“If we don’t make it fun, we’re going to The school, also called Manhattan lose our children.”

Academy of Technology, currently has In a recent 5th-grade class, De over 50 sports teams in over two dozen Matteo split the class in two teams and different sports—from soccer and base- led them in a game involving rolling ball to non-traditional sports includ- beanbags at other players’ feet. Players ing surfing, cycling and table tennis. De who were hit by a moving beanbag had Matteo said that 95 percent of students in to do step-ups or jumping jacks before the K-8 school participate reentering the game.

John De Matteo on a sports team.

With assistance via a De Matteo attended P.S. 126/I.S. 126-Manhattan grant from the National elementary school in Football League, De Academy of Technology the Bronx and said that, Matteo converted a for80 Catherine St. unlike most physical edumer supply closet into cation teachers, he did not stand out a fitness room with exercise bikes conathletically. He credited this experience nected to video game consoles (students with his drive to increase participation in who pedal most quickly move fastest in sports. the game). He said that at a time when “I was a scrawny little runt of a kid,” students were more likely to play video he said. “I feel for these children because games in their spare time than sports, I was one of them.” it was important to cater the activity to De Matteo, 37, enforces a strict policy their interests. against cutting students from teams. In Susan Crowson, whose son Ben is class, he often teaches students simpler in 6th grade, described Ben’s experiand more accessible versions of popular ence on the basketball team, noting that

teamwork was constantly reinforced. De Matteo did not coach the team, she said, but his philosophy reigned.

“There were 23 kids on the middleschool basketball team and everybody played the same amount,” she said. “[De Matteo] motivates his kids and just really makes them want to try… He brings them all together as a team.”

Jake Jiler, an 8th-grade student and a member of several sports teams, said that physical education with De Matteo is “different from my old school.” He explained, “We did the same five things at gym.”

De Matteo said that his next big goal is to expand athletic opportunities to students across the city. He has already founded nine middle-school sports leagues and organizes a track and field meet that draws thousands of participants from over 200 schools. His mission, he said, is to teach students that sports are about more than competition and that, at heart, are about cooperation.

As Crowson explained, “He’s using sports as a tool to teach kids what’s really important.”

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blackboard awards for teachers

Emphasizing the ‘Special’ in Education Young Bronx teacher keeps teens interested in school

her students as they can see that she is someone who cares.”

“I like being involved with what happens with students outside of school,” she said.

Looser is a big supporter of extracurricular activities and trusts they can bring out the best in students. “These services are the best ways to get kids learning and reading,” she said, drawing on the Anime Club as an example. “Maybe it’s not Chaucer and Shakespeare, but you can draw kids in and eventually they’ll get there.”

Unlike other newer teachers, Looser is not in danger of losing her job because special education teachers are not being fired, but unfortunately, the school is facing teacher layoffs and has been hit hard by budget cuts. Over the last three years, Lehman lost $6 million and many extracurricular clubs were slashed.

“I don’t know how it’s functioning,” she said. “We didn’t have that kind of money to begin with.”

Looser, the United Federation of Teachers’ chapter chairperson at the

karl crutchfield

By Paulette Safdieh education, she seized the opportunity.

As a high school educator for children “I didn’t know it at the time, but spewith special needs, Anne Looser has giv- cial education was an outgrowth of the en back to the New York City community Civil Rights movement which I had studmore than you might expect for her short ied over the years,” said Looser. “The 29 years. After just five years of teach- movement was all about providing suping English literature to the freshmen at port to those in need. I don’t believe it’s a Herbert H. Lehman High School in the coincidence that I ended up where I did.”

Bronx, Looser is often praised for her Looser taught special-education teachcompassionate approach to education. er support services at a south Bronx “I’ve always been interested in social school before moving to Lehman. She now justice issues,” said Looser, who previ- teaches English and literature to 9th gradously worked with the ers who range between 14 homeless population in and 17 years old.

Anne Looser Harlem. “Some of the Her hard work and Herbert H. Lehman people I worked with dedication are noticed High School couldn’t fill out welfare and appreciated by applications because 3000 E. Tremont Ave., Bronx Looser’s colleagues. they couldn’t read.”

“Anne is always ready These experiences encouraged Looser to lend a hand to fellow educators in need to pursue a career in education. She grad- of assistance. She has a wealth of knowluated in 2007 with a master’s degree in edge borne from her experiences in the Urban Education from Mercy College. classroom,” said fellow teacher James Looser originally wanted to teach his- Rodriguez. “Her easygoing and compastory but when offered a position in special sionate style makes her a favorite among

Anne Looser. school, argued that teachers and unions are too often pegged as the problem, and new education policies in New York aren’t helping the children.

“The teachers are on the frontlines every day with our youth,” she said, adding that they need to be acknowledged more for their hard work.

Regardless of such frustrations, Looser’s five years at Lehman flew by. “I used to think I would be a history teacher, teaching about the revolution,” said Looser. “I quickly realized I’m part of a revolution, not teaching it.”

Cultivating Writers and Gardens Hill also directs students in the school’s musicals

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Meredith Hill.

By Alan Krawitz As one of the first teachers at Columbia Secondary School for Math, Science and Engineering, 6th-grade teacher Meredith Hill is having a real impact and teaching much more than English, according to parents, students and colleagues alike.

Hill, 25, began teaching when the school opened in 2007. Advanced students have the option to also take courses at Columbia University, a partner with the city in running the public school.

Hill, who teaches English to about 96 6th graders, said, “It’s simply wonderful being able to have impact on these kids.”

Parent Mark Kerman said Hill is an “extremely enthusiastic teacher who O u r To w n NY. c o m

inspires her students to not only work hard Maria Herrera, PTA co-president and but to also dramatically improve their ver- one of the people who nominated Hill for bal, written and critical-thinking abilities.” a Blackboard Award, wrote: “Meredith Hill, whose mother was also a public manages her classes in a way that engages school kindergarten teacher, said almost the more advanced students while bring50 percent of the school’s students are ing the more struggling students along as native Spanish speakers. well… I just can’t think of a more dedicatClass readings reflect Hill’s focus on ed, able and energetic teacher.” social issues. Some recent titles include Drawing upon her background in music The Breadwinner, the story of an 11-year- and community theater, Hill also coordiold Afghani girl forced to become the nates the school’s creative arts program. breadwinner of her family in Taliban-ruled She has directed performances with Afghanistan. Yet another casts of 50-plus kids, story focused on Mexican with recent productions Meredith Hill siblings crossing the bor- Columbia Secondary School including Thoroughly der illegally into the U.S. Modern Millie, Junior for Math, Science and “I want to have stuand Seussical.

Engineering dents take on writing “I like to make the pro425 W. 123rd St. projects that will have ductions as professional impact,” Hill said, pointas possible,” she said. ing out that she incorporates online pub“She is a great English teacher, but lishing, podcasting and letter writing to has quite a talent as a dancer and theater public officials as part of the curriculum. teacher as well,” wrote one student who “I want to give kids a voice in the world.” nominated Hill.

Effective writing, she adds, can be an Having grown up on a horse farm in amazing tool to help kids take action.

Haverhill, Mass., Hill wanted her students “I like to give my kids a forum to use to have an understanding of how food writing for something that matters to gets to their table. them,” she said.

So she helped start a rooftop garden

three years ago at the school, tapping a formerly abandoned plot owned by the city, and then attaining a Green Thumb Certification for the garden. “My students get involved in urban landscaping, gardening and composting,” Hill said. “We’re planting edibles and I’ve already had the kids make pasta from scratch.”

Eventually, says Hill, her kids will publish their own food magazine.

As a fourth-year teacher, Hill could get laid off this summer, but she sounded more concerned about how the layoffs would affect the school rather than herself.

“If cuts go into effect, it could seriously alter the atmosphere at the school,” Hill said. “Kids are our future leaders. We work with them day in and day out. I don’t know why anyone would want to change the great community we have now.”

Hill said the seniority rules are inherently unfair. “Kids need consistency and teachers that are professionals,” she said.

She said many new teachers are “incredible” and that teachers should be evaluated more on what they’ve done and their impact on students.

But regardless, Hill says, “I’m not planning on leaving teaching anytime soon.”

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One Part Mom, Another Socrates

Renaissance students says she teaches them to think and loves them like a mother who declined to giver her age, recalls observing members of her community from all walks of life helping people in need. Consequently, she decided on a career as a human rights lawyer and was headed for law school after graduating from St. John’s with a B.A. in economics. But her experience teaching adult literacy classes altered her course.

Among her students, “There was one grandmother and another woman who was an ex-addict single mother with several young children. They did not have high school diplomas, they had large families to support, yet they were very determined, hopeful, full of spirit and kind towards one another. It was the best two years of my life to date, and law school took a back seat,” she said.

She got her education masters at Queens College in 1995. After a brief stint in a large high school, she transferred to Renaissance and the rest is history.

For Karen Campos, who graduated with the class of 2010, and is currently completing her freshman year at Boston University’s School of Management,

andrew schwartz

By David Gibbons Rebekah Oakes said her son, Kadin By any measure, the Renaissance Wisniewski, worked harder on papers Charter School is a shining example of its for Guimaraes’ class than any other, and kind in New York City. Thandi Guimaraes often enthusiastically brought home disis a lynchpin of the school’s success, ful- cussions started there. filling multiple roles “Thandi really made me think—not Guimaraes has taught required cours- just analyze and infer but take an idea es in history, government and economics and think about its larger implications to 11th and 12th graders at Renaissance in life,” said Wisniewski, headed to City in Jackson Heights for the past 10 years. College. “I’ll always remember one day She is also senior advisor, ushering each when she went around the class and year’s graduating class asked everyone what of about 45 students Thandi Guimaraes role religion played in through their final year their lives… It wasn’t Renaissance Charter School so much the content of of high school. She is a 35-59 E. 81st St., Queens our talk that stuck with member of the student support team, which me but the fact that my deals with individual cases of hardship friends and I continued the discussion and discipline, and faculty advisor to the all day, long after class was finished.” student government.

The Socratic Method is at the core “She consistently challenges her stu- of Guimaraes’ teaching philosophy and dents to think deeper and think differ- practice. In fact, when asked to expound ently,” said Renaissance principal Stacey on these, she began with a quote from Gauthier. “Her demeanor is one of calm- the ancient Greek philosopher himself: ing strength. She has a quiet way of “Education is the kindling of a flame, not keeping students’ attention—even when the filling of a vessel.” ‘senioritis’ hits.”

Growing up in Ozone Park, Guimaraes,

Thandi Guimaraes.

Guimaraes surpassed her roles as teacher, senior advisor and mentor, to become a mother figure: “She was always available to listen about academics and personal challenges. When you had no one to share your distresses with, she was always there. She would give you what my friends and I would call ‘the Thandi look’ and you knew you were going to spend a long afternoon in her room after classes were over just talking.”

From Tanzania to Wall Street

Millennium’s biology teacher looks beyond the body and sees the whole student

andrew schwartz

Bill LaMonte.

By Emily Johnson “Life is never dull in a high school, “ Bill LaMonte said with a smile, shouldering a bag full of graded tests and setting off through the mass of chattering students.

A beaded bracelet peeks out from his sleeve, a souvenir of his days working in a rural Tanzanian village for the Peace Corps. In the 10 years since then,

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teaching has taken him to China, India, take notes,’” said Estrella, who took his the Bronx and finally to Millennium High advanced biology class last year.

School in the Financial District, where Estrella will attend DePauw University his impact over the last three years has this fall on a full scholarship. LaMonte made him one of this year’s Blackboard wrote a letter of recommendation for her Award winners. application.

“I try to show my students what learn“Some teachers, when you’re not in ing is really about,” LaMonte said. “A lot their class anymore, they sort of forget of times kids are so stuck in their bubble you,” she said. “But when he sees me in of iPods and subways and Starbucks. the hall, he’s always like, ‘Hi, Star. How’re It’s not just the classroom, it’s the global you doing, Star?’ It’s nice.” perspective.”

As he walks through Millennium’s It’s this focus on educating the whole halls, he stops regularly to check in with person rather than simply teaching biol- the students he passes. “You going to ogy that has won the really try today?” he asks admiration of his stuone. “Smile!” he tells Bill LaMonte dents, their parents and another, grinning until he Millennium High School his fellow teachers. “Mr elicits a giggle.

75 Broad St. LaMonte even inspires But in the classroom, the parents,” one of his his upbeat yet firm nominators wrote. “He has been incred- demeanor makes it clear who’s in charge. ibly supportive in helping [my son] with “I think what is so impressive about academic as well as social issues,” wrote him as a teacher is that when you another. Senior Star Estrella, 18, calls him walk into his classroom, more often her favorite teacher. than not you hear the students talking, “He’s a really interactive teacher. It’s not him,” said Sarah Petersen, a felnever, ‘Take out your textbooks and let’s low Millennium teacher who was also

posted to Tanzania with LaMonte in the Peace Corps.

Before he came to Millennium, he taught at a school in the Bronx where he worked with students to keep them out of trouble with the law. He also prepared a class of 7th graders for a high-school level standardized science test. Nearly all of them passed.

“He carried the breakdown of the scores around in his pocket for a while,” Petersen said. “He was so proud of them.”

LaMonte has been teaching in New York City long enough that he isn’t in danger of being let go in the new budget cuts, but he still worries about how the cuts will affect the schools.

“Every time we make that choice, it’s against the child’s best interest,” he said.

He says he was honored and surprised to be chosen for a Blackboard.

“And at the same time, slightly embarrassed too, because I know a lot of other teachers who deserve this recognition,” he said. “I work hard, that’s all I know. I love teaching. It’s a passion and it’s something I want to do until I die.”

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blackboard awards for teachers

Teacher Looks Beyond the Numbers Her students at Hunter High leave with a love for math

my family, and I think they know that I like them and they respond to that.”

Based on the number of comments her students made about her teaching skills, her assessment isn’t far off.

One student nominating her for a Blackboard Award wrote, “You can’t dislike this woman. She has a great sense of humor, never failing to energize the deadest, sleep-deprived class, and she’s always glad to help students that are struggling.”

Jessie Frank, who was in her 9thgrade math class, added, “She pushed me harder than any teacher I’ve ever had, but I could only appreciate it and love her more, because it was so undoubtedly evident she had our best interest at heart.

She made me want to do well in her class, and her contagious passion for math made me love the subject as well.”

Part of Kuberska’s success is due to her outlook on teaching the subject. She explained that many of her kids had never really learned to study math in middle school. So when they get to high school suddenly the work is much harder, which

andrew schwartz

By Linnea Covington ject helps. Kuberska, 35, has always had Math teacher Eliza Kuberska’s intro to a math-oriented mind and, she said, as a her job was serendipitous. After getting child her family often discussed the subher master’s degree at New York University ject. Born in Poland to a chemist father in 2001, she had already obtained a posi- and a literature-loving mother, Kuberska tion at another school but decided to said she caught on to math from a very interview at Hunter College High School young age. And when the family moved to anyway. She spoke with David Hankin New York when she was 17, it helped her and described the conneccommunicate. tion she felt as, “I almost “Coming here with a Eliza Kuberska heard music and I realized linguistic barrier, I was Hunter College I found my guru and he able to use math as my High School was going to teach me.” language, which I could 71 E. 94th St. And now, she does the communicate more easily same for others. through than English,” she “Ms. Kuberska has taught me so much said from her New Jersey home. and her bubbly, enthusiastic personality In college, Kuberska fell in love with is absolutely contagious,” said Marianna physics and, as her studies continued, Zhang, a freshman in the extended hon- she considered going into math finance. ors math class. “She is not afraid of spon- Then 9/11 happened and that career taneity, and, most importantly, she makes didn’t seem like a viable option. Instead, a personal connection with every student she decided to try teaching and has never by walking around the room and looking looked back. at us straight in the eye.”

“I feel like my work at Hunter is one Teaching mathematics isn’t an easy of the greatest gifts someone could give feat, but having a real love for the sub- me,” she said. “The kids feel like part of

Eliza Kuberska helps students overcome their fear of math. makes them think they are bad at it.

“A colleague of mine said 80 percent of the teaching is made up of psychology and the other 20 percent is actual math, and that is absolutely correct,” she said.

For her, personally, she hopes to learn with the kids and improve her own “growth curve.” And one day before she dies, she said she wants to understand the general theory of relativity. If she teaches herself as well as these kids, there is no doubt she will get it.

She Does It Mir’s Way

Harlem pre-school leader sometimes defies conventional wisdom

andrew schwartz

Mrs. Mir doesn’t teach so much as inspire, say parents.

By Rosaleen Ortiz It was early January and the sun was shining on one of the many snowfalls of the season. The sticky snow muffled the sounds of the city as a group of preschoolers made angels on a rooftop playground in Upper Manhattan.

“They were completely uninhibited.

It was a magical day,” recalled Suzanne Mir, a veteran teacher at Corpus Christi School on West 121st Street.

O u r To w n NY. c o m

Mir, 63, and a colleague helped their “Mrs. Mir doesn’t teach so much as classroom children build a snowman out inspire,” said Lai, whose daughter An of three giant snowballs. “And I lifted is one of Mir’s students. “My 4-year-old these things up,” said Mir. “I nearly broke comes home discussing why Obama is my back.” our boss, how we need to help the people For more than two decades, Mir has in the tsunami and what vegetables are been dishing out her special brand of seasonal.” pre-K education: equal parts fun, creativMir would be the first to tell you she’s ity and respect. Twenty-two years ago, one opinionated teacher. After decades Mir and a former Corpus Christi princi- of trial and error, she says she’s earned pal drove to Princeton, N.J., and packed the right. But she admits some of her a station wagon with insights raise eyebrows: Suzanne Mir $5,000-worth of furniKids should not be ture and toys to establish forced to share everyCorpus Christi School the school’s first pre-K thing (sharing has to 535 W. 121st St. program. evolve) or be best buds Armed with a degree in early child- with everyone (they’re required to be hood education, five years in the class- nice). Teachers and parents should erase room teaching 1st through 4th grades, the concept of “good” or “bad” children and 11 years of experience raising two from their memories (all kids are good, boys of her own, Mir set out to prove even those who don’t always listen). that kids blossom best in an environ- Children need unrestricted movement ment that encourages self-expression, (Mir takes her kids outside almost every mutual respect and, above all else, hav- day). Each child has a voice—kids come ing a blast. to school to learn how to listen.

She’s become, as Thanhha Lai put it, “a Mir is also a firm believer that everylegend among know-it-all parents” in the one should have their moment in the spotColumbia University neighborhood. light. Each morning in her classroom, a

different kid is named “head honcho” for the day. Head honchos are put in charge of tasks like delivering a message to another teacher, dispensing materials to classmates or clearing tables. They also get to choose the activity they’ll do for the day, which includes joining the “Kitchen Workers” or the “Block Builders.”

“I facilitate justice and fair play. I facilitate love of learning and the joy of working with materials that are going to make a holy mess. And by the way, I don’t clean up those blocks,” said Mir as she glances at a cabinet filled with row after row of neatly packed wooden blocks.

Her ultimate goal, she said, is to build a fun day for the kids who enter her classroom.

Stephanie Pilla, another parent, said her daughter Clementina looks forward to coming to school every day, and even asks about it during holiday breaks. Pilla calls Mir the ideal pre-school teacher because she’s a master at discipline but still encourages play. “And how many teachers,” she added, “would take their whole class onto the roof during a big snowfall to make a snowman?”

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TEACHERS COLLEGE, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IS PROUD TO SUPPORT THE 2011 BLACK BOARD AWARDS

WE SALUTE THE TEACHERS AND ADMINIS TRATORS WHO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF NEW YORK CITY STUDENTS.

2011 RECIPIENTS STEPHEN CEDERMARK Carroll School PS 58 (MA, 2008, Music and Music Education)

MEREDITH HILL Columbia Secondary School for Math, Science and Engineering (MA, 2011, Teaching of English)

WILLIAM LaMONTE Millenium High School (MA, 2006, Science Education)

PREPARING AND SUSTAINING EDUCATION LEADERS IN NYC

Graduates of Teachers College, Columbia University are impacting the fields of education, health, technology, policy, psychology, behavioral sciences, art administration, communications, and international education.

It’s your turn. www.tc.edu/discover

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new york family

A Matter of Time

When a child is struggling with homework, sometimes all that’s needed is a plan

By Emily Levy

A

s parents, we’ve all seen our schoolaged kids experience overwhelming frustration when it comes to homework. But sometimes it’s not the number of assignments that’s causing stress. After all, who hasn’t seen their child wait until the night before to begin studying for a test or planning a major project? While it’s not uncommon for children to be unrealistic about how long it takes to complete their assignments, the good news is that a simple time-management technique may be all that’s needed to get your student on track. Here, Emily Levy, owner of the Manhattan-based tutoring service EBL Coaching, offers some tips to help your child get organized and focused: • Purchase a proper assignment book.

You’ll want to make sure the book has

Welcome To The Family!

For great parenting resources, fun weekend events and savvy shopping tips, sign up for our weekly email newsletter at newyorkfamily.com. only one day per page, with a section for each class, so that your child has plenty of space to write down assignments.

• Ask your child to organize the page into four columns: ET (estimated time), AT (actual time), O (Order) and D (Done).

• Explain to your child that she only has to write down assignments in the “Assignment” column while at school.

Then, after about a 20-minute break after school (enough time for a quick snack), she should begin completing the sheet.

• Start by asking your child to estimate how much time each assignment will take to complete and write it in the ET

(Estimated Time) column. For example, he might predict that it will take 20 minutes to complete a math worksheet, 40 minutes to study for a spelling test and 35 minutes to answer questions from his science textbook.

• Next, your child should complete the O (Order) column by ordering the assignments based on which one she will do first, second, third, etc. It is generally better for students to do the longer, more complex tasks first, since they tend to have more energy early on. Also, attempting a harder task first leaves time to call a friend or reach out to a parent if they need help.

• Your child should then start working on the first assignment and time herself

Hot Tip of The Week

The Wonderful World of Science As part of the 2011 World Science Festival, Washington Square Park will transform into a science wonderland Sunday, June 5, complete with interactive We st Si d e S p i r it . c o m

exhibits, games and experiments designed to teach and inspire.

Don’t miss this day of free family fun! For more info, check out worldsciencefestival.com.

to see how long it actually takes, then write that time in the AT (actual time) section. Use an analog clock rather than a digital one so she can visually see the time passing.

• Finally, once each assignment is done and put away, your child should check off the D (Done) column.

A completed assignment book page might look like this:

ET

AT

he has left to play, and then set a timer near him that will go off when the minutes have passed.

• Set up a behavior chart or report card goal to help with task initiation and make children aware of distracting habits that often delay getting them started.

Eventually, these goals should become more automatic and children will no longer need to write them down.

O

D

Assignment

MATH

20m

35m

4

√

Complete worksheet

SCIENCE

35m

50m

2

√

Answer questions on p.40 of book

When students first use this strategy, they often find that there is a large discrepancy between the estimated and actual time. However, as they practice, kids will become more realistic about how long tasks actually take to complete, and in essence, build better time-management skills.

Other tips to consider: • Give your child a realistic sense of how time passes, and help him learn to transition from one activity to the next by using time increments for everyday activities. For example, if he is playing a game on the computer, tell him how much time

As children progress through school, the demands will grow exponentially as the quantity of work increases: more tests, longer assignments and multi-step projects. The more children practice these strategies, the more efficient they will become at managing their time.

Ultimately, their efforts should pay off with continued academic success.

Emily Levy is the owner of EBL Coaching, a specialized one-on-one and small group tutoring service catering to students in Pre-K through 12th grade.

For more info, visit eblcoaching.com.

Ju n e 2 , 2 0 1 1

• WeS t S id e S p ir it

•

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14384d_OurTown/WestSideSpirit_Ad_14384a_QTribune_Halfpg 5/12/11 10:32 AM Page 1

Bnai Zion supports humanitarian projects in Israel The Bnai Zion Medical Center Ahava Village for Children & Youth The Quittman Center The David Yellin Academic College of Education Ma’aleh Adumim We are proud to participate in the Celebrate Israel parade

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NEWS YOU LIVE BY

RESTAURANTS 1770 House Almond Babette’s Beachhouse Beacon The BoatHouse Blue Parrot Cittanuova Deli Counter Fine Foods & Catering Dylan’s Candy Bar East Hampton Point Estia’s Little Kitchen Fresno The Frisky Oyster Georgica The Grill at Pantigo Gulf Coast Kitchen Gurney’s Pasticceria and Beach Bakery Jamesport Manor Inn La Plage Love Lane Kitchen

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June 2, 2011

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29

FRIDAY, JUNE 3 FILM

MUSIC

New York Premieres—Harpsichordist Elaine Comparone and The Queen’s Chamber Band end their season at St. Mark’s Church In-the-Bowery with an annual program of world and New York premieres. 131 E. 10th St., 212-280-1086; 2:30 p.m., $25.

SATURDAY, JUNE 4

Nine Decades of Art—The Grace Institute is celebrating the work of Marge Chapman and June Felter, two artists in their nineties, with the new exhibit Two California Artists: Celebrating their 90’s in NYC. 1233 2nd Ave., 212-832-1389; 9 a.m.–9:30 p.m., Free.

MONDAY, JUNE 6 ART

DANCE

City of Dance—10 choreographers present six programs, performed by four companies at the Gotham Dance Festival, plus matinee performances from six emerging dancers and choreographers. The Joyce Theater, 175 8th Ave., 212-242-0800; $10+.

SUNDAY, JUNE 5 EVENT

Experimental Tribute—The 16th annual Vision Festival honors the achievements of 70-year-old free-jazz artist Peter Brötzmann, with seven days of innovative experimental music, dance, poetry and art. Abrons Arts Center, 466 Grand

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 8 ThEATER

As It Is In Heaven—3Graces Theater Company presents As It Is In Heaven, a 10th anniversary revival of Arlene Hutton’s play, which portrays an 1830s Shaker community shaken by the arrival of a newcomer. Cherry Lane Studio, 38 Commerce St., 212-239-6200; 7 p.m., $18.

Pulp Classics ColleCtion of the new Britain MuseuM of aMeriCan art, proMised gift of roBert lesser.

Ziggy Played Guitar—The Museum of Art and Design will screen D.A. Pennebaker’s Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, capturing the band on the night of July 3, 1973, on what was purported to be the final appearance of Bowie’s legendary glam-rock alter ego. 2 Columbus Circle, 212-2997777; $10.

ART

Friday, June 3

St., visionfestival.org; $30+.

Rafael De Soto’s “Softly Creep Softly Kill,” from the Aug. 1947 issue of Detective Tales, is just one of 90 pieces on display at the new Society of Illustrator’s exhibit.

Pulp Art: The Robert Lesser Collection will feature 90 rare paintings created for the covers of popular fiction magazines in the first half of the 20th century. Bold and eyecatching, these sexy, adventure-charged paintings will scale the walls of all four floors of gallery space at the Society of Illustrators. In addition to Lesser’s large-scale paintings, there will also be displayed examples of rare pieces depicting iconic symbols from pulp magazines and cinema from the 1920s thorough the ’50s, including The Shadow, King Kong, Bride of Frankenstein and Doc Savage. 128 E. 63rd St., 212-838-2560; $15.

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Your Refrigerator’s Dirty Little Secret

President/CeO

Tom Allon tallon@manhattanmedia.com CFO/COO Joanne Harras jharras@manhattanmedia.com grOuP PuBLisHer Alex Schweitzer aschweitzer@manhattanmedia.com direCtOr OF interaCtive Marketing and digitaL strategy Jay Gissen jgissen@manhattanmedia.com

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federal regulations state that they must be reclaimed or properly destroyed. But there are numerous reports of violations.

Releasing the coolant takes less than a minute, and enforcement is difficult.

Even when the recycler complies fully with EPA regulations and carefully disposes of all pollutants, much of the refrigerator, including plastic, glass and foam, will be landfilled. The biggest problem is the insulating foam: CFCs (chlorofluoro-

Refrigerators that are retired are often not recycled according to law. carbons) and HCFCs (hydrochlorofluorocarbons), banned for years in the U.S. for most uses, were used as the blowing agent for insulating foam in refrigerators and freezers until 2005. More refrigerant is housed in the foam than the compressor itself, and preventing its release is important both in terms of the ozone and global warming.

To address this, the Environmental Protection Agency launched the Responsible Appliance Disposal (RAD) program in 2006. RAD is a voluntary program designed to help protect the ozone layer and reduce emission of greenhouse gasses. Partners, including utilities, municipalities, retailers and manufacturers, commit to a much higher standard of appliance recycling. RAD partners encourage appliance owners to permanently retire old, inefficient units, and keep careful records of their disposal process.

In perhaps the most important change from standard processing, RAD partners are expected to recover the foam and blowing agents for proper disposal, typically removing the sheets of foam by hand. This greatly reduces the CFCs that are released when an appliance is retired.

“Not only are we protecting the ozone through the RAD program, we are protecting the climate system,” said Evelyn Swain, of the EPA’s Stratospheric Protection Division.

Recycling at this level requires handson work and is more expensive. But its labor-intensive nature also provides the welcome by-product of low-skilled jobs with good pay.

“It’s not a process that can be streamlined. The very nature of the job requires people,” said Tom Schober, program manager of the Appliance Recycling Program at Southern California Edison.

As a consumer, your choices can support the EPA’s work and create jobs.

Look for retailers and manufacturers that are partners in the RAD program, and confirm that the individual stores in your area are participating. Ask specifically about the haul-away service your retailer uses, and what they do to ensure proper recycling. The New York City Department of Sanitation will pick up and recycle your old refrigerator (but not the foam)—call 311 to schedule an appointment.

With strong consumer demand, your refrigerator’s dirty little secret won’t have to become everyone’s dirty air.

Laura Hepler Tappe is a long-time volunteer on environmental issues and a stay-at-home mom on the Upper East Side.

LET T ER S

Change of Mind

To the Editor: In your second article (“No Plan for More Diversity at Stuy,” May 12) on the decline in diversity within the student bodies at Stuyvesant and Bronx Science high schools since the schools stopped using the Discovery Program—which gave a second chance to students who had just missed scoring high enough on the entrance exam to qualify—you report that Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott, commenting on your first article, told NY1 that the reinstatement of the Discovery Program would do nothing to help increase the extremely low percent-

May 26, 2011

age of minority students at these schools. my guess would be that this is no longer Then, further on in the piece when a priority to the higher ups.” you asked former Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott was the head of the Rudy Crew about Urban League at the Pets: the program, Crew time Crew describes. said that it addressed One might wonder West Park Church’s Gay Rights Battle “an issue raised by whether now that he the NAACP and by is Chancellor instead, P.5 the Urban League his thinking on this ‘Sign’ of Times At Riverside Park at that time having important issue has to do with access of changed. poor and minority P.6 ‘War Horses’ RichaRd BaRR students to the highat Lincoln Center Upper West side prestige high schools Stuyvesant’s Minority Admissions Under Attack in NYC. The missing Page 8 Page 10 P.2 Letters have been link was their ability has a weekly e-mail blast! edited for clarity, to compete on the WestSideSpirit.com style and brevity. entrance exams and A Dog-Meet-Dog Dating World May 19, 2011

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Since 1985

andrew schwartz

New York Press Association

By Laura Hepler Tappe With summer coming, discussion will soon turn to ways of reducing the strain on the electrical grid. If it is time for you to purchase a new refrigerator, you may expect that your old one will be permanently taken off the grid, and that its disposal will be environmentally sound. The surprising fact is that neither of these things is necessarily true.

The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that if every inefficient refrigerator in the U.S. were retired and replaced with a recent, Energy Star-qualified unit, national annual savings would be 38 million megawatt hours—the amount of energy used each year by more than 3 million American households. But first the old refrigerators must actually be retired. Many are sold or kept as a second unit, and when hauled away by retailers, the first stop is often a used appliance dealer. In the end, nearly half of discarded refrigerators stay in operation, either in the U.S. or in the developing world—the most likely spot for refrigerator re-sale.

“Most people don’t realize that the used appliance industry has always subsidized appliance disposal. But in most cases, you’re not doing anyone a favor selling them a used appliance,” said Edward Cameron, president of Appliance Recycling Centers of America. “It won’t last that long and it’s not energy efficient.

The best way to dispose of old appliances is to generate materials that can be used to create new products.”

Refrigerators that are retired are often not recycled according to law.

Refrigerants are a danger to the ozone and a source of global warming, and

Elected leaders and education experts question dropping minority enrollments and the Department of Education’s decision to eliminate Discovery Program at Bronx Science and Stuyvesant Part 2 of an Ongoing Investigation with The Amsterdam News

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N ew s YO U Li V e B Y

citiquette

The World is My Dumpster Al fresco dining can be a dangerous thing— depending on your neighbors

By Jeanne Martinet Last Saturday night I witnessed a random act of terracism.

It started off as a perfect evening at the home of friends. It was a balmy 72 degrees, with a gentle Hudson River breeze—ideal conditions for eating outside. My fellow dinner guests seemed in particularly good spirits—and why not? Our hostess was a professional chef, so we all knew we were in for a gastronomical treat. Moreover, the hosts’ second-floor terrace was exceptionally large (by New York standards) and was furnished for maximum guest comfort. Seated at the long wooden dining table, we were just beginning to enjoy the first few bites of a delectable leg of lamb when suddenly—whzzzt!—a lit cigarette came plummeting down, passing six inches from the host’s ear and landing next to him on the deck.

We all shrieked, then laughed. (It happened to be the night that wacky group of Christians thought the world was going to end, which may have made us a little more jumpy than usual at the sight of fiery objects flying by.) Our host, looking miserable, informed us that this kind of thing happened to them on a regular basis, and that sailing cigarette butts were not by any means the worst occurrences. Other kinds of trash, including (horrors) used condoms, had been flung down during dinners. After that we found ourselves glancing upwards every so often at the balconies stretching some 40 floors above us, like Chicken Little waiting for the sky to fall. The sweetness of the evening now seemed tainted with unknown menace. When it began to drizzle, we happily moved inside. The drizzle did not last long, however, and we began to think about moving back out on the terrace for dessert. That’s when it started really pouring—or so we thought. In actuality someone was watering plants on a balcony a couple stories up!

The hosts, who had moved into the building recently, confessed that they had chosen this particular apartment because of the spacious terrace; they had anticipated a whole glorious summer of entertaining al fresco. Now, after three months of dealing with the nasty neighborly debris, they were thinking of moving. They had never imagined a building We st Si d e S p i r it . c o m

with such high rents would have such low-life tenants. They told us neighbors walking their dogs below them occasionally tossed poop up over the railing onto their terrace as well. Complaints to the landlord had been fruitless.

There are, of course, many people (mostly bored teens) who see balcony vandalism as a sport—throwing water balloons or furniture off to see how things will smash, or how people below will scatter. There is even a website where people brag-post about the various items—bottles, cans, books, mice (to name a few of the tamer ones)—they enjoy hurling off balconies. In fact, the sheer number of YouTube videos there are of people tossing objects off rooftops and balconies suggests an innate impulse of some sort—a compulsion to engage with the laws of gravity.

Perhaps the desire to let things fall is a deep-rooted instinct that kicks in when mammals are up high in open air. Like a chimp throwing down coconuts from the top of a tree.

However, notwithstanding the possibility of some sort of terrace envy, or actual hostility regarding noise that may be wafting up from the terrace parties below them, the people who are tossing cigarette butts in this case are not doing it for fun. Presumably they are just thoughtless individuals, with no idea of the potential consequence of a lit cigarette catapulted into the air. Perhaps in their version of reality, the cigarette ceases to be as soon as it leaves their hands. This kind of social blindness, the lack of consciousness about the existence of other people, is sadly a part of our modern urban life.

By the end of the night, as we were enjoying our chocolate cream puffs from the safety of the smaller dining area indoors, we had come to the consensus that our hosts were going to have to invest in a protective awning—flame resistant, if not bulletproof. After all, as one man put it, “They do say that good fences make good neighbors.”

“Hmm,” I said, gazing out at the dripping sofa cushions on the terrace. “If fences make good neighbors, I guess balconies make bad ones.”

Jeanne Martinet, aka Miss Mingle, is the author of seven books on social interaction. Read her blog at MissMingle.com.

Lessons in inequality

By Michael Mulgrew

President of the United Federation of Teachers

Six decades after the landmark Supreme Court ruling on educational equality, Brown v. Board of Education, it is outrageous that thousands of New York City children get a graphic lesson in inequality every day when they walk through the doors of their schools.

These are students – from Harlem to Brooklyn, from the South Bronx to Manhattan’s East Village -- who attend co-located schools in buildings where a district school is housed alongside a charter school. In too many cases, there are smart boards, freshly painted walls and small class sizes in the charter school while in the public school there are broken blackboards, crumbling facilities and overcrowded classrooms. Separate and unequal.

In some cases, charter students get disproportionate access to shared facilities like the cafeteria or the gym. In one case in Brooklyn, parents at PS 9 raised funds to have a library built and then watched as the Department of Education proposed co-locating a charter school in their building and giving the 160 charter students 6.75 hours in the library per week while the 550 to 610 PS 9 students were to get 4.75 hours.

It is not the charter schools that are to blame for this injustice, but the DOE. It is the DOE that comes up with colocation plans and it is the DOE that is responsible for making sure those plans are fair and in compliance with the state’s charter law, which requires an “equitable allocation” of shared facilities.

It is the DOE that is fostering inequality in our school system, directly harming children’s education.

That is why the UFT, the NAACP and others sued the DOE to end the practice of co-locations that treat district school students as second-class citizens.

Our lawsuit also seeks to stop the closing of 22 schools because again, the issue at stake is equality for our city’s most vulnerable students. Fifteen of the 22 schools were on the list of closing schools last year as well, and after we sued to stop their closure in 2010, we worked with the DOE to come up with a plan to provide extra support to these struggling schools.

But the DOE walked away from every promise it made to these schools and never provided any of the help it said it would. Instead, it cynically declared

the schools were performing poorly and moved to close them again in 2011.

It’s another lesson in inequality. These are schools with large numbers of highneeds learners and some of the most disadvantaged students in our city. These students are as entitled to an education as any other students, yet the DOE refuses to provide the resources and support needed to teach them, and instead moves to close their schools and push them further to the margins.

Universal public education is one of the foundations of a democratic society, an idea pioneered by Americans in the last century and under attack now by “reformers” who think education should be run as a competitive marketplace rather than treated as a universal right.

That is why we, as educators, fight for educational equality — we fight for all of our students and all of the children of our city. It is why we are fighting for all children to have equal access to school facilities and why we are fighting to stop the DOE from simply abandoning struggling schools and disadvantaged students. It is why we care not just about teacher layoffs that would devastate education inside the classroom, but also about child care cuts that would push already struggling families into crisis; why we think closing libraries is bad and giving another tax break to the rich is unconscionable. It’s why 20,000 people turned out on May 12 to protest the mayor’s budget and why we will continue to do whatever it takes to pass a city budget that’s fair to all of our students and the citizens of our city.

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